


Sunset

by ericaismeg



Series: 30 Days of Writing [6]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: 30 Days of Writing, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M, WARNING: Paige's death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-03
Updated: 2014-05-03
Packaged: 2018-01-21 18:57:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,943
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1560638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericaismeg/pseuds/ericaismeg
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's always sunset when they meet.</p>
<p>* * *</p>
<p>Stiles finds Derek mourning Paige's death while watching sunsets. He doesn't want him to be alone, so keeping him silent company starts to become a pattern.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sunset

**Author's Note:**

> I've decided to attempt this [writing challenge.](http://foxerica.tumblr.com/post/84097258077/felicitygs-spontaneousfangasm)
> 
> Day Six.
> 
> The word of the day is: sunset.
> 
> Things to note: in my mind, Paige died around the end of June/beginning of July. Stiles stumbles across him during the summer, and this is when they're back in school.

            Stiles kicks a rock in front of him, and watches as it tumbles down the slope of the path. When it comes to a stop, he walks towards it to kick it again. He’s not sure what brings him back to this part of the woods again. His dad always says, once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, and three times is a pattern. That’s _exactly_ what had happened with Stiles. He’d surpassed the rule of a pattern four months ago.

            If his dad knew he was here, Stiles would be lectured and potentially grounded from seeing Scott for two weeks. Then again, his dad’s never followed through on that threat. He knows Stiles will just sneak out to see Scott anyway.

            Scott’s recently started dating Allison Argent though, and Stiles likes her. Really, he does. The thing is that Scott’s spending _a lot_ of time with her, and that’s where he is tonight—which could explain why Stiles is back here again. He gets bored, sitting at home.

            How that had become possible, Stiles isn’t sure. All he knows is he can’t hang out at his house anymore and being in this part of the woods is starting to become a _good_ habit he doesn’t want to break anytime soon.

            Stiles can picture the rest of his friends’ reactions for him being out here. Scott would be concerned, and ask him if he’s sure that it’s _safe_. Allison would probably hand him a knife and tell him to proceed with caution. Her dad’s a professional hunter, or something. She would warn him about the animals in the woods. Stiles doesn’t like to think about it. Lydia would lecture him on all of the rumours that had gone through the school, reminding him that they’re not all true, but some of them could be. Rumours have to start from somewhere. Jackson would probably call him a loser. He’s not very original sometimes. Danny wouldn't have an opinion either way.

            None of them would mean anything bad about it. There were other rumours that had gone around, because once you become the focus of one rumour, others are easily shared. It's no longer _just_  about what happened six months ago. It's about all the 'sketchy' or 'worrisome' things since. Stiles ignores the rumours for the most part, but they're still out there. They still exist. God, he hates how far they've tumbled, how much they've changed, and how  _wrong_ they are.

            He forgets about the rock he’s been kicking when he spots his newest friend. He’s not actually sure he can call him a friend. They don’t actually _talk_. That’s probably a written requirement for friendship somewhere, but Stiles doesn’t care. It’s strangely comforting, being out here. Stiles doesn’t walk any faster, but continues in the lazy manner he’s been walking with for the past twenty minutes. When he comes around the large rock, he climbs up and sits down in his usual spot.

            This should be weird. If he thinks about it, it _is_ weird. Stiles doesn’t think about it though.

            He’s not shy about studying Derek Hale’s face. The guy hasn’t shaved in at least five days, and Stiles wants to tell him it’s time to trim it again. Stiles has many things he would like to tell Derek, but they had silently agreed to never speak. He’s often wondered what Derek’s facial hair feels like—if it’s rough or if it’s soft—but that is also something that will be left unsaid.

            He tilts his head, narrowing his eyes on the way Derek’s lips are shaped today. Then his eyes move to the guy’s eyebrows. It’s how he can tell if it’s been a bad day or an exceptionally bad day. Today it’s the latter, so Stiles moves his hand closer to Derek’s on the rock. They don’t touch more than their pinky fingers.

            Another unspoken rule, Stiles thinks. It’s not as if Derek’s life had been easy lately. He’s not surprised that the guy runs away to the farthest point of the Beacon Hills woods. It had only been six months ago when Derek had lost his girlfriend. Rumours had it that he killed her only no one could prove it.

            Stiles remembers his dad coming home the night it had happened. He’d been more exhausted, more worn, than usual. Stiles had asked him about it, and the Sheriff had looked at him with grave eyes. “ _Paige Madison died tonight, Stiles._ ”

            He knew who Paige was. Of course, he’d known her. She had been known at school for playing the cello and dating Derek Hale. She’d given Derek a run for her money, everyone said. She’d shot him down repeatedly, and only accepted after he’d proved to her how great they could be together. They’d become the ‘ _it_ ’ couple, and Stiles’ heart had been crushed just a little.

            His dad hadn’t thought that Derek had killed Paige on purpose. The rest of the town did though. “ _He didn’t care about Paige Madison; he was so careless with her_.” “ _He was never serious about her—it’s Derek Hale, for crying out loud!_ ” “ _He could’ve saved her life, and he chose his own. How is he not in jail?_ ” “ _If he had truly loved her, he wouldn’t have let her die._ ” “ _I heard he used to hit her. He hated her, and she was too scared to leave._ ”

            Stiles knows Derek hears the whispers, hears the townspeople making snide remarks when he walks by, and had to deal with protesters outside his house until Stiles’ father threatened everyone with harassment.

            Derek and Paige had been driving home from their six-month anniversary date. Stiles remembers grumbling about it to Lydia. Apparently, Derek had been driving recklessly (Stiles doubts that—he once saw Derek yell at Matt Daehler for driving too fast). A deer had jumped out in front of them. Things like that happen so suddenly, that Stiles is positive he couldn’t have done anything to prevent it. Derek had tried to swerve to miss it, but the deer had been caught by the right side of the car, had come crashing through the window. Derek had ended up driving straight into a tree.

            Paige hadn’t felt a thing. That’s what Stiles’ dad had assured him.

            “ _He’s a murderer. It’s his fault Paige is dead. She was going places, he isn’t. He wanted to keep her here, and got mad. He let it happen._ ” Stiles had heard that one too many times.

            He’s not looking at Derek now. The rock their sitting on overlooks a large empty field, that Stiles assumes the Hales must own. The view of the sunset is always calming, always peaceful. Stiles has been watching it with Derek almost every night for the past four months.

            Thinking about how he’d stumbled upon Derek, just going on a run out of boredom and seeing the guy walking off the path to this rock, Stiles is surprised Derek hadn’t yelled at him to leave. He comes here, Stiles knows, to reflect about Paige, to punish himself by watching the sunset because Derek knows that Paige can’t see it rise again. Stiles has picked this all up by watching his face, by trusting his gut feelings, and because Stiles had learned as much as he could about Derek when he’d had a crush on him a year ago.

             He hadn’t even acknowledged Stiles the first time he’d joined Derek on the rock to watch the sun disappear behind the horizon. He hadn’t walked with Stiles back through the dark forest. Derek had gotten up and left. He’d disappeared before Stiles could catch up to him.

            Stiles can’t be too sure why he went back the second time. It’d been a couple days after, and he had had a strange gut feeling mixed with boredom. That’s what he tells himself anyway. Derek had been there, sitting on the rock, staring out into the empty field.

            It had occurred to Stiles that maybe Derek had come out here with Paige to make out, talk, have sex, something. Maybe this had been their spot. Maybe Stiles had been disrupting a silent conversation with Paige.

            However, Derek had glanced up at him when he’d sat down—the only time he’s reacted to Stiles’ presence really. His eyebrows had gone up. The surprise had been evident. Stiles hadn’t seemed to care. He’d sat down beside Derek, who had only given the _smallest_ of nods.

            It’s a pattern now, Stiles thinks again. It scares him to think that Derek might not have any friends left. Derek had quit the lacrosse team—just when Stiles had signed up too—and doesn’t speak to anyone at school. All of his previous friends have abandoned him. He doesn’t sit anywhere in the cafeteria or the courtyard. Stiles usually sits with Scott, Allison, Lydia, Jackson, and Danny, so he’s never been brave enough to ditch them to go looking for Derek. He’s not sure he could find him anyway.

            Stiles glances away from the purple, orange, and pink sky to look at Derek. He hopes their friends. He _wants_ Derek to consider him a friend. They’ve been doing this silent act for four months now. That has to count for something, right?

            He thinks about the third time he’d come back. It’d been the day after the second time. Stiles hadn’t want Derek to be alone, to _feel_ alone. Derek had looked at him that third day, almost as if he’d been expecting Stiles to come back. Maybe he’d been hoping.

            Stiles will never understand how the town could be so cruel to Derek. Paige had died, yes, and that is tragic. How could they blame Derek though? It had been an _accident_. There hadn’t been any way for Derek to save Paige, because as far as Stiles knows, the _deer_ had been what killed Paige—not the impact of crashing into the tree. Not the fact that Derek hadn’t been able to swerve far enough to completely miss the deer altogether…it’d been the deer. The deer is at fault. Then again, the deer is innocent because it had just gotten scared.

            Maybe that’s why everyone seems to blame Derek. There wasn’t anyone else to blame, there wasn’t any way to get justice for the loss of Paige’s life. Still, Stiles hears their whispers and wonders how many of them Derek believes.

            The colours are starting to fade. Stiles always finds it eerie how quickly time passes while he sits with Derek. He won’t leave until the darkness has settled in. It doesn’t bother him to walk through the woods, but it would bother his dad.

            Stiles doesn’t realize how exceptionally bad today has been for Derek until he hooks his pinky in Stiles’. He doesn’t turn to look at him, because he knows Derek isn’t looking back. He curls his pinky to hold Derek’s, and feels himself worrying.

            It’s not until the night sky arrives that Stiles feels guilty for having to leave. He glances at Derek, who’s still looking forward. Stiles doesn’t want to let go of his pinky, doesn’t want to abandon him as everyone else had.

            When Derek uncurls their pinkies, Stiles feels torn with relief and worry. He watches Derek’s face for any sign of _any_ emotion and finds nothing but sadness.

            Stiles pulls a piece of paper out of his pocket. He’d been bringing it with him every day for the past month, and had never found the right time to give it to Derek. He slides off the rock, and faces the boy who lost too much.

            He holds the corner-ripped piece of paper out. Derek glances down at it, before meeting Stiles’ eyes. It’s the first time they’ve made eye contact in a while. Derek’s eyebrows furrow together. Stiles continues to hold it out though. He’s not going to talk, because he’s not going to push Derek. He’ll talk when he’s ready.

            A trembling hand takes the piece of paper. Derek opens it carefully. It’s Stiles’ phone number. He hadn’t been sure when in their friendship he should give it to Derek, but he doesn’t want Derek to feel alone when Stiles isn’t around. Maybe Derek’s family is warm and loving, or maybe they blame him too. Stiles doesn’t know, but he knows that Derek doesn’t have to be alone.

            Derek’s eyes meet his again. While his expression doesn’t seem to change, Stiles knows that he’s silently questioning the phone number. He gives him a nod, and starts walking through the forest to go home. Tomorrow’s sunset would be similar, but it’s never going to be the same from here on out.

 

♚♞♚♞♚♞

 

            “I’m sorry I had to cancel last night,” Scott tells Stiles the next day at their lockers. Stiles just gives Scott his best smile, even if he’s currently worried about Derek. He hadn’t seen him at school today. Had he pushed Derek too far by giving him his number? He hoped not. “But Allison and I made it to third base.”

            “Haven’t you guys had sex yet?” Stiles says, with a laugh. It doesn’t relax him the way it should. His eyes search the halls. Derek usually walks by around this time to get to his Chemistry class.

            Stiles doesn’t even care how creepy it is that he knows Derek’s routines.

            “No,” Scott says, shaking his head. “But she bought condoms, and we talked about it, so I know she wants to. I just want to make it nice for her.”

            “That’s,” Stiles starts. He doesn’t finish what he’d been about to say, because a flood of relief washes over him. Derek’s walking down the hall towards him. He slumps back against the locker and has no clue what Scott’s talking about.

            It’s the first time Derek meets his eyes at school. His expression might not change from emotionless, but Stiles sees it anyway. He knows that he’s not joining his friends for lunch today.

            He mumbles as much to Scott when Derek continues down the hall, and Scott’s confused puppy expression lightens Stiles’ mood.

            “Why not?”

            “I have something to do,” Stiles tells him as he closes his locker. “It’s important. I’m sorry buddy. But just think. You and Allison can sneak off to make out somewhere guilt-free.”

            Scott gives Stiles’ a worried look, before he smiles. “That sounds like an awesome plan, dude. You’re the best, did you know that?”

            Stiles shrugs. “Don’t worry, I’m marking this down on my tally of who’s the better friend. You’re gonna have to pay up sometime.”

            Scott just laughs and throws his arm around Stiles’ shoulders.

 

♚♞♚♞♚♞

 

 

            When lunch rolls around, Stiles barely stops at his locker. He checks his phone, and isn’t that surprised to see he has a text message from an unknown number.

 

**UNKNOWN:** _music room 304_

            It hadn’t occurred to Stiles that Derek would spend his lunches in the music room, but it makes sense. The guy’s been in guilty mourning for the past six months now. He _would_ torture himself by going to the place that Paige spent most of her time.

            However, when Stiles pushes the music room door open, he’s surprised. There are _other_ people sitting with Derek.

            Four heads turn to look up at him. There’s a gorgeous blonde girl, who Stiles knows is Erica. They’d talked a few times for various reasons over their childhood. He’s always liked her. She’s dating Boyd, who is the quiet, but overall good guy sitting beside her. There’s another kid between Boyd and Derek. His name is Isaac Lahey, and Stiles had always liked him. They played on the lacrosse team together, and sometimes shared jokes.

            Stiles hadn’t thought that Derek still had friends. He _never_ saw them together.

            He realizes he’s been standing in the doorway gaping at them for an awkward amount of time. He runs a hand through his hair, and glances back at the hall. He could leave. But this is so intriguing.

            He’s also not stupid. This is a _huge_ step for Derek.

            Stiles shuts the door behind him.

            “Good choice,” Erica tells him with an approving nod. “But why the fuck are you here?”

            “Good question,” Stiles answers as he walks awkwardly towards them. He glances around the room. “Why are you _here_? It’s a little morbid.”

            “It makes us feel close to Paige,” Isaac tells him. Stiles nods. That makes sense. He realizes he hadn’t thought too much about the other people mourning the loss of Paige. She had been well loved at the school, for sure, but after Stiles had started sitting with Derek, he hadn’t thought of anyone else. Isaac’s eyeing Stiles with suspicion. “How did you find us?”

            “Got a text,” Stiles replies honestly, as he grabs a chair and pulls it up between Erica and Derek. He looks at Derek and raises an eyebrow.

            “ _Derek_ texted you?” Erica sputters. “Derek, what are you…why?”

            “It’s _him_.”

            Stiles’ eyes go wide. He’s almost forgotten what Derek’s voice sounds like, because he hadn’t heard him speak in months. He realizes his mouth is hanging open, and tries to close it, but he can’t contain the surprise.

            “ _This_ is your rock buddy?” Isaac says, both eyebrows going up in surprise now. “Stilinski?”

            “Yes.”

            “Huh,” is the only thing Isaac can think to say to that.

            Erica puts her hand on Stiles’ arm, causing him to look back at her. Her eyes are brimming with tears, as if she might start crying in a few minutes. Her voice is quiet and soft when she says, “Thank you.”

            “Uh.” Stiles glances back at Derek before he says to Erica, “I’m not sure why you’re thanking me.”

            “Derek,” Erica prompts.

            Stiles whirls his head back to Derek, who holds his eyes steady. He doesn’t say anything, but Stiles isn’t sure he has to. There’s something about the way he looks at him. He just gives him an unleashed smile and nods to the group. “So, what’s the kind of thing we talk about here?”

            Everyone but Derek looks surprised at Stiles’ words. Boyd speaks up finally and says, “We were just discussing whether or not Erica should run for homecoming queen.”

            “Against Lydia?” Stiles says, with a small laugh. “I would _pay_ to see that showdown.”

            Erica laughs. “I like Lydia, so I think I would be okay with either of us winning.”

            “But it’s still a fight to the death, right?”

            “Right,” she says with a grin. “I’ve never really been the girl who runs for homecoming queen but I think this year it’s time for a change.”

            “I’d vote for you,” Isaac says. He has an afterthought. “Unless Lydia threatens me—I saw her threaten Jackson in the locker room once. God, I so wouldn’t want to be him. She’s like a scary lioness.”

            “She’s actually more of a kitten when you get to know her,” Stiles says, as he pulls his legs up onto his chair. “But even I wouldn’t want to cross her. Do you guys remember what she did to Matt when she found out that he’d thrown me into a locker?”

            “Matt threw you into a locker?” Boyd asks in a dangerous tone.

            “Back in grade nine.” Stiles, touched by Boyd’s protectiveness, continues with his story. “She’s the reason that he showed up to school with completely blue skin. I have no idea how she got into his house, how she knew when he would shower, or how she got the dye into the water. I don’t want to know. _But_ Matt leaves me alone now.”

            Derek snorts. Stiles looks at him, and Derek asks, “Lydia did that? I punished the lacrosse team because I thought they’d did it.”

            Stiles starts laughing. Derek had become the captain in grade ten. He’d done a good enough job that the team kept him up until this year when he’d quit. He’s a year older than Stiles, along with everyone else in this room, but Stiles didn’t feel the difference of the year. He never had, which is unusual because Jackson complained about it a lot. How he couldn’t wait to be a senior to show the nobodies below him. “No, that was all Lydia and her wrath.”

            “And you call her a kitten?” Isaac asks, skeptically. Stiles grins.

            “You’re also friends with Allison,” Erica points out. “She’s pretty badass, I must admit.”

            “Definitely. Her father’s a hunter, so she’s skilled in knives _and_ crossbows. The fact that they’re both friends should scare the school,” Stiles tells them. “Add in Erica, and I’m pretty sure no one would ever step out of line.”

            “ _That_ ’s the key to world domination!” Erica says excitedly.

            Laughter fills the room, and by the look on Derek’s face, he’s not used to it.

 

♚♞♚♞♚♞

 

            When Stiles walks up to the rock later that day, he’s not sure what to do. Does he talk, or do they do their silent thing? Stiles starts climbing onto the rock when Derek says, “I’m glad you come here.”

            Stiles looks at him and nods. “Me too.”

            “I was going to show Paige this view,” Derek says quietly. Stiles settles in, ready to listen. “She always liked places like this—the ones that no one knows about. I guess that’s why I started coming here. My parents always say that people in general take simple things like the beauty of a sunset for granted.”

            “You come to enjoy them for Paige,” Stiles fills in.

            “Yeah.” Derek glances over at Stiles. He moves his hand first. Their pinkies touch, and then Derek’s is curling over Stiles’. “I want to enjoy them for me too.”

            “You should,” Stiles tells him. “There have been some breathtaking ones. I’m man enough to admit it.”

            Derek’s lips quirk upward. “I’m glad I wasn’t alone to enjoy them.”

            Stiles nods.

            Then Derek’s talking about Paige in a way that Stiles is positive he hasn’t been able to before this. He starts filling in Stiles on her annoying habits—the way she sometimes expressed her feelings in a look, which Stiles finds humourous because Derek has no idea that he does the same thing—and tells Stiles about her hopes and dreams. He talks about the time that Paige had gotten mad at him, and he’d just kissed her and hoped to hell she’d forgive him. She’d slapped him hard, and then launched herself at him.

            Derek keeps talking, keeps laughing with Stiles, and doesn’t stop even when the sunset has been over for a long time. The stars shine, the moon offers them light, and Stiles leans into Derek a little when he yawns.

            “She liked you,” Derek whispers after he’s been silent for a while.

            “She did?” Stiles asks.

            “Yeah. She used to tell me that you were hilarious in class, and just an all-around troublemaker. She said I would like you.”

            Stiles isn’t sure what to say, so he doesn’t say anything. Derek doesn’t expand. He remembers Paige had been in a couple of his classes. She hadn’t spoken much, but she was definitely nice and well liked in general. She was also smart as a whip. Lydia had respected her for that.

            “Was she right?” he asks after five or so minutes pass.

            “Yeah, she was. She was usually right about everything,” Derek confides.

            Then Stiles feels Derek moving his hand away. He frowns, only to realize that Derek’s intertwining _all_ of their fingers. It’s been a fine day for progress, but as they walk back to Stiles’ Jeep a little while later, Stiles thinks that it’s going to be a slow journey. He looks up at Derek.

            They’re in it together.

**Author's Note:**

> Well.
> 
> I'm not sure what to say about this.
> 
> But it kinda hurt to write, only because I have a lot of Paige x Derek feels. I have this headcanon that if they'd been in high school together, Stiles would've silently helped Derek deal with the mourning process and stuff.
> 
> I also feel like there are so many details I could've written. Like how Derek feels about the townspeople being dicks (I'm mean, and I recently watched Beauty and the Beast), and how Derek isn't ready to be serious with Stiles just yet, but he wants to get there and stuff. I also could've written about the other rumours surrounding Derek that would maybe make even Scott McCall nervous of his best friend hanging out with him.
> 
> But it didn't feel right to write. So I hope you're okay with that.
> 
> Also in the first scene, [this is the sunset I was imagining](http://www.pbase.com/missouri_skies/image/55460882). Not that it matters.


End file.
